And he has now confirmed that his life in the ring has come to a end - with a record of 31 wins from 38 fights, with seven losses.

"There are only so many times you can fall before it becomes foolhardy to continue," Harrison wrote on his official website. "I've fallen a lot, but winning the heavyweight title was a destination I really wanted to get to. Coming back from adversity has been synonymous with my life.

"I've done well to turn my life around, but sadly my dream to be a legitimate world champion will be unrealised.

"I believed if I was mentally and physically right, I could figure these young guns out. Saturday was my final chance to prove it. The thing that pulled me up was pride, so I wanted a chance to continue and go out on my shield. It was not to be…"

Harrison's career highlight came as an amateur, when he won Olympic Gold in Sydney in 2000. He appeared to have the world at his feet and was signed to a lucrative deal.

He won his first 19 fights, against admittedly limited opposition, but tasted defeat to Danny Williams when fighting for the Commonwealth title in 2005. Three further defeats in his next seven fights followed and he never truly regained the momentum.

The 41-year-old moved to bounce back and beat Ali Adams, but he then suffered an embarrassing loss at the hands of David Price. That first-round defeat did not signal the end as he won Prizefighter for a second time in March of this year, but he found Wilder too good in his final fight.